Oscars: A Record 27 Animated Feature Films Vie for the Trophy

A record 27 animated features have been submitted for consideration for the animated feature film Oscar, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Friday.

The crowded list reflects the fact that most of the major studios are now all-in when it comes to animation, with Disney represented by Pixar's Finding Dory and Disney Animation's Zootopia and Moana; Universal/Illumination's The Secret Life of Pets and Sing; DreamWorks Animation/Fox's Kung Fu Panda 3 and Trolls and Fox/Blue Sky's Ice Age: Collision Course; Sony's The Angry Birds Movie as well as the R-rated Sausage Party; and Warner Bros.' Storks.

Specialty distributors are staking claims with movies like Focus/Laika's stop-motion animated Kubo and the Two Strings and Sony Pictures Classics' The Red Turtle, which won a special jury prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival Un Certain Regard sidebar.

The Swiss film My Life as a Zucchini will be doing double-duty as it has been submitted for animated feature consideration and is also Switzerland's entry in the foreign-language film Oscar race. It will be distributed in the U.S. by GKIDS Films, the indie distributor that's shown a knack for garnering animated feature nominations and also is fielding such films as April and the Extraordinary World, Miss Hokusai and Phantom Boy.

Netflix also has thrown its hat in the ring with the animated film version of The Little Prince.

Several of the films that have been submitted must also complete Los Angeles theatrical runs to qualify, but as long as 16 of those films complete their qualifying runs, under Academy rules up to five animated movies can be nominated for the award, nominations for which will be announced Jan. 24.

A complete list follows:

The Angry Birds MovieApril and the Extraordinary WorldBilalFinding DoryIce Age: Collision CourseKingsglaive Final Fantasy XVKubo and the Two StringsKung Fu Panda 3The Little PrinceLong Way NorthMiss HokusaiMoanaMonkey King: Hero Is BackMuneMustafa & the MagicianMy Life as a ZucchiniPhantom BoyThe Red TurtleSausage PartyThe Secret Life of PetsSingSnowtime!StorksTrolls25 AprilYour NameZootopia